Characteristics of very elderly patients in the emergency department - A retrospective analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Elderly people, defined by age 65 years and older, made up 18.45% of the Swiss Population in 2018 and their number is projected to rise continuously. Data investigating specific characteristics of this patient subgroup, especially in the emergency setting, is scarce. METHODS: Demographic data of admission records from all patients aged 65 years or older admitted to our emergency department (ED) between January 1st 2015 and December 31st 2018 were investigated. Retrospective chart reviews of patients admitted in 2018 were conducted. Comorbidity burden was assessed by Charlson Comorbidity Index. Risk factors for death, longer hospitalization and placement in a nursing facility were identified by multivariate regression. RESULTS: The prevalence of elderly patients (≥65 years) admitted to the ED between 2015 and 2018 was rising from 33% in 2015 to 37.8% in 2018. In 2018 709 patients were 90 years and older (3.6%). Age above 90 years and high comorbidity burden were identified as independent risk factors for death. Polypharmacy, hyponatremia and high comorbidity burden were independent risk factors for longer hospitalizations. Advanced age and high comorbidity burden were independent risk factors for placement in a nursing facility. CONCLUSION: The number of elderly patients admitted to our ED is continuously rising. There was no difference in overall disease burden, number of medications and hospital length of stay between octogenarians and nonagenarians. We identified risk factors for mortality, long hospitalizations and need of placement in a nursing facility.

Dyskalemias in patients with acute kidney injury presenting to the emergency department are common and independent predictors of adverse outcome.

BACKGROUND: No data concerning the prevalence and risk factors of dyskalemia in acute kidney injury (AKI) exist. We investigated (a) prevalence rates, (b) risk factors and (c) outcome of hypo- and hyperkalemia in emergency patients. METHODS: In this cross-sectional analysis, all patients admitted to the emergency department of a large public hospital in Switzerland between January 1st 2017 and December 31st 2018 with measurements of creatinine and potassium were included. Baseline characteristics, medication and laboratory data were extracted. Chart reviews were performed to identify patients with a diagnosis of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and to extract their baseline creatinine. For all other patients, the ADQI backformula was used in order to calculate baseline creatinine. AKI was graduated using creatinine criteria of the acute kidney injury network. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to identify risk factors for appearance of hyperkalemia and outcome. RESULTS: AKI was found in 8% of patients. Hyperkalemia was present in 13% and hypokalemia in 11% of patients with AKI. AKI stage, potassium-sparing diuretics, ACE inhibitors and underlying CKD were the strongest risk factors for hyperkalemia. Hyperkalemia as well as profound hypokalemia were independently associated with prolonged length of stay and in-hospital mortality. The study is limited by its dependency on chart review data in order to identify patients with chronic kidney disease and by limitations of the ADQI backformula to calculate baseline creatinine. CONCLUSIONS: Dyskalemias are common in emergency patients with AKI and are independent risk factors for adverse outcomes. Potassium-sparing diuretics, ACE-inhibitors, AKIN stage and CKD are predictors of hyperkalemia in AKI.

Emergency department overcrowding : Analysis and strategies to manage an international phenomenon.

Overcrowding in emergency departments is a common and worldwide phenomenon, which is widely reported even in the lay press. Strategies to address this incriminating situation for patients, nurses, physicians and hospital administrators are urgently needed. The current review presents an analysis of the overcrowding problem as well as strategies to answer overcrowding situations.

Patterns of prescription opioid use in Swiss emergency department patients and its association with outcome: a retrospective analysis.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to clarify the prevalence, indications, analgesic comedications and complications of prescription opioid use in patients presenting to a large emergency department (ED). DESIGN: Retrospective chart review. SETTING: Large, interdisciplinary ED of a public hospital. PARTICIPANTS: All patients aged ≥18 years presenting between 1 January 2017, and 31 December 2018, with documentation on medication were included. INTERVENTIONS: None. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Prevalence rates for prescription opioid use and its indication. Prevalence of analgesic comedications in prescription opioid users. Hospitalisation rate, 72 hours ED reconsultation rate, 30-day rehospitalisation rate, in-hospital mortality. RESULTS: A total of 26 224 consultations were included in the analysis; 1906 (7.3%) patients had prescriptions for opioids on admission to the ED. The main indications for opioid prescriptions were musculoskeletal disease in 1145 (60.1%) patients, followed by neoplastic disease in 374 (19.6%) patients. One hundred fifty-four (8.2%) consultations were directly related to opioid intake, and 50.1% of patients on opioids also used other classes of analgesics. Patients on prescription opioids were older (76 vs 62 years, p<0.0001) and female individuals were over-represented (58 vs 48.9%, p<0.0001). Hospitalisation rate (78.3 vs 49%, p<0.0001), 72 hours ED reconsultation rate (0.8 vs 0.3%, p=0.004), 30-day rehospitalisation rate (6.2 vs 1.5%, p<0.0001) and in-hospital mortality (6.3 vs 1.6%, p<0.0001) were significantly higher in patients with opioid therapy than other patients. In 25 cases (1.3%), admission to the ED was due to opioid intoxication. CONCLUSIONS: Daily prescription opioid use is common in patients presenting to the ED. The use of prescription opioids is associated with adverse outcomes, whereas intoxication is a minor issue in the studied population.

A Case of Exertional Heat Stroke Complicated by Hypoxic Hepatitis.

BACKGROUND: Exertional heat stroke is a life-threatening condition often complicated by multiorgan failure. We hereby present a case of a 25-year-old male presenting with syncope after a 10 km run in 28°C outside temperature who developed acute liver failure. Case Presentation. Initial temperature was found to be 41.1°C, and cooling measures were rapidly applied. He suffered from acute renal failure and rhabdomyolysis and proceeded to acute liver failure (ASAT 6100 U/l and ALAT 6561 U/l) due to hypoxic hepatitis on day 3. He did not meet criteria for emergency liver transplantation and recovered on supportive care. CONCLUSIONS: Acute liver failure due to heat stroke is a life-threatening condition with often delayed onset, which nevertheless resolves on supportive care in the majority of cases; thus, a delayed referral to transplant seems to be reasonable.

The Untimely Popping Phial: Poppers as an Unusual Cause of Skin Corrosion of the Thigh.

BACKGROUND: Alkyl nitrites or "poppers" are widely used as sex-drugs due to their aphrodisiac and muscle relaxant effects. We describe the rare case of a large-sized dermatitis after direct skin contact with the poppers-fluid in a poppers user. Case Presentation. A 52-year-old patient presented to the emergency department due to burning pain on his proximal right thigh and scrotum. Clinical examination showed an 8 × 5 cm measuring burning wound resembling lesion. During further history the patient mentioned that the day before presentation a "poppers" phial unintentionally opened in his pocket and the fluid leaked. CONCLUSIONS: The present case shows severe skin defects after skin-contact with alkyl nitrates in a "poppers" user. Maculopathy and methemoglobinemia are prominent unwanted side effects of "poppers" use. However, our report demonstrates that attention should also be paid to potential harm for the skin.

Dysnatremias in emergency patients with acute kidney injury: A cross-sectional analysis.

PURPOSE: We aimed to investigate the prevalence, risk factors and outcome of hypo- and hypernatremia in emergency patients with acute kidney injury (AKI). METHODS: In this cross-sectional analysis all emergency patients between January 1st 2017 and December 31st 2018 with measurements of creatinine and sodium were included. Baseline characteristics, medication and laboratory data were gathered. Chart reviews were performed to identify patients with a diagnosis of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and to extract baseline creatinine. For all other patients the ADQI backformula was used to calculate baseline creatinine. AKI was graduated using creatinine criteria of the acute kidney injury network. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to identify risk factors for appearance of dysnatremias and outcome. RESULTS: AKI was found in 8% of patients. 392 patients (23.16%) had hyponatremia, 24 (1.4%) had hypernatremia. Use of potassium sparing diuretics, a medical cause for emergency referral, use of thiazide diuretics and AKI stage were the strongest risk factors for hyponatremia. Loop diuretics, a medical cause for emergency referral and AKI stage were risk factors for hypernatremia. In patients with all classes of hyponatremia, length of hospital stay was significantly longer compared to patients with a normal serum sodium. In the binary logistic regression analysis with death as outcome, hyponatremia as well as severe hypernatremia were independent risk factors for mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Dysnatremias are common in emergency patients with AKI. Diuretic medication is a major risk factor for hypo- and hypernatremia. Both hyponatremia and severe hypernatremia were independent risk factors for adverse outcome.

Oral Anticoagulation in Patients in the Emergency Department: High Rates of Off-Label Doses, No Difference in Bleeding Rates.

BACKGROUND: Empirically, a significant proportion of patients using direct oral anticoagulation (DOAC) take off-label reduced doses. We aimed to investigate the prevalence, indications, dosages, and bleeding complications of oral anticoagulants on admission to the emergency department. METHODS: In this retrospective analysis, patients presenting to our emergency department between January 1 and December 31, 2018, with therapeutic oral anticoagulation were included (ie, vitamin-K antagonists, rivaroxaban, apixaban, edoxaban, and dabigatran). A detailed chart review was performed for each case concerning characteristics, indication, and bleeding complications. RESULTS: A total of 19,662 consecutive cases in the emergency department were reported: 1721 (9%) had therapeutic oral anticoagulation. Vitamin-K antagonists (41%), rivaroxaban (36%), and apixaban (19%) were the most common. Stroke prophylaxis in patients with atrial fibrillation (63.2%) and venous thromboembolism (24.1%) were the most common indications. In 27 cases (1.6%), no indication could be identified; further, 32% of patients were classified to have either off-label doses of DOACs or an international normalized ratio (INR) out of range (in vitamin-K antagonists), whereas 20% were classified as off-label underdosed and 12% as overdosed. No difference in the likelihood of bleeding on admission could be found between the respective drugs. Only concomitant use of aspirin was significantly associated with presence and higher severity of bleeding. CONCLUSIONS: Vitamin-K antagonists are still the most widely used drug followed by rivaroxaban. A significant proportion of patients are being prescribed off label-doses. While no difference was found for the respective anticoagulants with respect to bleeding, concomitant aspirin use was a significant predictor for bleeding in our collective.